Must be bad Feng Shui… When last we checked, the space vacated by Fraiche restaurant at 312 Wilshire Blvd. in Santa Monica was supposed to be in development for a dubious Chinese restaurant named Face. Well, all that appears to have fallen through as evidenced by the disappearance of all references to the upcoming Chinese restaurant and the prominent display of brand new “For Lease” signs. We’ll have to see what develops…
It appears that the sleepy little oenophilic restaurant at 104 Santa Monica Blvd. in Santa Monica, 104 Wine Bar by the Ocean has quietly slipped out of existence. No word on a replacement just yet, but with all the recent openings in that area (Stout, Water Grill, Taberna Arros y Vi), I can’t imagine the space will sit idle for long…
The little Italian creamery and breakfast nook Spumoni Café at 715 Montana Ave. in Santa Monica that opened only about a year and a half ago is now a different establishment. Café de Paris has now taken over the space. You’d be forgiven for overlooking this: The café still sports the big Spumoni Café sign and looks exactly the same, the only difference being the new window signs, menu, and Tour Eiffel outside the front door. Apparently, the owner of Spumoni restaurant (next door) pulled out of the little café, leaving the other owner, who is French to take over entirely. Look for a menu of breakfasts, crepes, salads, and yes, the gelato stays. cafedeparismontana.com
Looks like things are about to change over at Susan Feniger’s Street. They recently announced that they will close down for a vacation at the end of September and will re-open after a “major shift”, with inscrutable promises that the adventurous restaurant celebrating world street food will “never be the same”. Until the closure, they’re going nostalgic with a Flashback menu featuring old favorites from the past 5 years that could be available for the last time. A restaurant spokesperson playfully refused to reveal what changes are coming and informed me that the entire staff have been sworn to secrecy so we’ll just have to wait and see what develops… eatatstreet.com
The latest branch of “fast fire’d” gourmet pizza restaurant Blaze Pizza officially opens today (Monday) in the Culver Crossroads shopping center at 4114 Sepulveda Blvd. in Culver City. And to kick to kick things off, tomorrow (Tuesday) they’re offering free pizzas for Facebook friends from 6pm to 9pm. Read more here: blazepizza.
Still searching for a reason to try Seasons 52, the healthy-ish supper-clubby chain slowly making inroads into SoCal? How about this… Right now you can get a flight of three wines, followed by a full pour of whichever was your favorite and one of their signature flatbreads for either $15 or $20 (depending on the wine) daily until 6pm. Check out your choices and read more here.
Down but not out… After a late July fire closed local fave restaurant, singles scene, sports bar, and tourist trap Yankee Doodles at 1410 3rd Street Promenade in Santa Monica, questions arose as to what would happen next. But you can’t keep this plucky little phoenix down as indicated by the signs and permit applications in the window. Looks like they’re planning a major remodel. No word on an re-opening date (this is SM after all), but I’ll keep my eye on it…
Neighborhood breakfast and lunch spot Red Heart Cafe is now up and running in Santa Monica at 3103 Ocean Park Blvd. in Santa Monica. Check out their menu of breakfasts, salads, and sandwiches and read more about the family-run cozy cafe here: redheartcafe.com.
With one other location in Korea Town, boba, tea, and hookah concept shop Boba Bear has moved into the odd space by a golf store at 1861 S. Bundy Dr. in LA. The interior, designed to foster “open-mindedness” and “a cultured experience” is set with sofas and low tables and more resembles a living room that a restaurant. You can check out their menus and read more about their vision here.
Need a last-minute plan for Rosh Hashanah, which begins today (Wednesday, September 4th) at sunset? Try Susan Feniger’s Street. They are offering a 4 course menu with choices such as Sephardic long-cooked egg mashed with feta, olive oil, and avocado; wood roasted cauliflower with fried olives and chimichurri; and strawberry shortcake with chocolate matzo candy. Cost is $45 per person. First seating is at 5pm, and open seating is at 7:30 and after. Check out the full menu and make a reservation here. L’Shana Tova!
A design review application is up on the space that used to house an appliance repair shop at 2212 Pico Blvd. in Santa Monica appearing to indicate that a new juice bar, Jazzy Juice could soon be coming. This could be a false name used solely for the artist rendering because there is absolutely no information available for such an establishment. But if you check out the City of SM application here, it clearly states the request to add a sign with the name Jazzy Juice, so we’ll have to wait and see…
Construction is underway on a large restaurant and patio going into the old LA Food Show space in the Manhattan Village Mall in Manhattan Beach. I’m not certain of the name as it’s not listed on the ABC application. Only the applicant, listed as “VMI Services Inc.” is named, and there doesn’t seem to be much of an online presence but you can check out their app here. The construction people told me that the name of the future restaurant will be Brick Roast House, but I can’t confirm this.
In other news, Manhattan Village Mall is looking to redevelop with an ambitious plan to add more shops and restaurants in what is now the parking lot. Designed to look like homey village with cozy walkways and streets, the plan is still in the hearings stage, but you can see some of the artist’s renderings and find links to the plans here.
With the dearth of elegant restaurants in LA, Chef Josiah Citrin has never been one compromise. His posh Mélisse in Santa Monica has long held the banner of a truly great destination restaurant. Recently, he has upped the ante with a series of exclusive dinners he calls “Something Different in the Augie Room“. On Wednesday, September 4th, the series will showcase Spain and commemorate the founding of LA on September 4th, 1781 by the Spanish. But the multi-course menu (costing $125) will be available to 10 diners only, so you’d better hurry if you want a chance to experience Citrin’s creativity firsthand. Reservations: (310) 395-0881. melisse.com
A new casual lunch spot, Red Heart Café is coming soon to 3101 Ocean Park Blvd. in Santa Monica. No word on an actual date, but they appear to be very close to opening soon. Until then, you can check out their tentative menu of salads, soups, and sandwiches here.
Looks like a brand new Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf is coming soon to Culver City. Signs recently went up on the construction site smack-dab on the NW corner of Washington Blvd. and Overland. No word on an opening date yet and it appears they have a ways to go on the free-standing structure. coffeebean
There appears to be no end in sight to the juicing craze as evidenced by the inexorable proliferation of fresh juice shops. Add one more to the list… Pressed Juicery continues its expansion with the latest branch coming soon to 2409 Main Street in Santa Monica, nearby to Rawvolution, Yogaworks, and Urth, which makes this an extremely health-conscious stretch of SM if you don’t count the new Rita’s Frozen Custard that opened only last week. Read more about their 100% raw, unpasteurized, and cold-pressed juices here: pressedjuicery.
I haven’t heard this much buzz about a supermarket in a long time… It seems Santa Monicans are really excited about the opening of the brand-spankin’ new Bristol Farms that officially opens Wednesday, August 21st at 9:00am. I’ve heard neighbors talking about it, co-workers, even people in check-out lines of other supermarkets talking about the new high-end grocery that remodeled the old Albertson’s space at 3105 Wilshire Blvd. (corner of Berkeley). Most are hoping for a viable alternative to Whole Foods, which has long held Santa Monica captive. Read more at: bristolfarms.com.
Bouchon Bakery in Beverly Hills is celebrating its 2nd birthday this Saturday, August 17th with special birthday cupcakes and $2 macarons all day. And you can check out their brand new line of fresh juices as well. Bouchonbakery.com
Notice a problem with the photo below? Seems curiously empty, no? Those who have been enjoying the Josiah Citrin-designed menu at the recently remodeled Tower 8 restaurant in the Oceana Hotel on a quiet residential stretch of Ocean Ave. in Santa Monica might be surprised to learn the next time they come in for a glass of wine and the glorious ocean vistas that they will be politely turned away. You may recall that the original restaurant in the Oceana (Hideaway) had a residents-only policy at the outset, but after the recent remodeling and reopening as Tower 8 in January of this year, they’ve been allowing walk-ins (Well, actually before the remodel to be precise). However, according to staff, recently the City of Santa Monica demanded that they resubmit for their licenses and stopped them from serving to locals and non-guests of the hotel until such time as the City “got back to them”. They’ve been in a holding pattern for about two months now with no word from Santa Monica as to when they’ll receive an answer. So until that time, as apologetic and frustrated as the staff are, there will be no service for walk-ins. oceanabeachclubhotel
I’ll bet you thought there already was an outpost of standard mall fixture Sbarro in the food court of Santa Monica Place. But the original inhabitant of the space now occupied by the pizza chain was Stephano’s Pizza. You can now heave a sigh of relief with this welcome news: Sbarro is now open in Santa Monica. Read more here.
Toddrickallen 